


too little, too late

by IronSwordStarShield (SweetFanfics)



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, Canon Compliant Unhappy Ending, Inspired by Fanart, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-19
Updated: 2019-04-19
Packaged: 2020-01-16 16:48:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18525616
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SweetFanfics/pseuds/IronSwordStarShield
Summary: The Cambridge dictionary defines "too little, too late" as: not enough of something that should have been provided earlier





	too little, too late

**Author's Note:**

> This quick little piece is inspired by 2 of HelloGarbageTime's Endgame countdown pieces: http://hellogarbagetime.tumblr.com/post/184272991681/6-days-until-the-avengers-endgame-world-premiere & http://hellogarbagetime.tumblr.com/post/184296022423/5-days-until-the-avengers-endgame-world

Steve looks up from the rack of socks he’s staring at when something noisily clatters to the floor. At the end of the aisle, a lady is hurrying away, a child pressed against her shoulder. Her hand is pressing the boy’s face against her shoulder. Her voice shakes as she chants, “Don’t look at that, baby. Don’t look at the TV’s.”

 

Dread crawls up his spine. Steve forgets about the supplies he was supposed to be buying and follows several other shoppers into the TV section. It’s a decent crowd despite the fact that it’s a small town.

 

_ Maybe they heard the news and came to see for themselves,  _ Steve quickly rationalizes. 

 

But what news? What’s happened?

 

Was it another alien attack?

 

A domestic terror threat?

 

Worse?

 

Steve’s running a list of options through his head as he takes the last turn. And freezes.

 

On the giant wall of tv’s ahead of him, over the heads of the crowd gathered, Steve sees the ruins of Tony Stark’s obliterated mansion fall over the cliff and into the ocean. He’s shocked he doesn’t  _ feel  _ the impact when the structure hits the water because he can feel the cold, hard slap of water hitting him. 

 

He doesn’t realize he’s walking towards the screens until he’s too close to one of the smaller screens. Steve sees his own frightened blue eyes reflecting back at him and wonders,  _ why didn’t anyone tell me? _

 

The ticker tape running at the bottom of the screen screams that the Stark mansion was attacked. Unknown assailants attacked Tony Stark thirty minutes ago. Rescue parties have been deployed and they’re searching underwater for the billionaire superhero.

 

“No news yet from Stark Industries CEO, Pepper Potts, on Tony Stark and whether he survived the attack or not,” the blonde news reporter tells her captive audience. “Let’s go over to our man on the scene. Jonathan, have there been any updates from the rescue crew?”

 

His ears go numb when they show shots of the small rescue boats floating around the slowly sinking structure. A fine ringing sound begins to echo in his brain. It’s like someone struck a tuning fork and placed it behind his jaw.

 

_ Why didn’t anyone tell me?  _

 

_ Why didn’t anyone call? _

 

_ Shouldn’t someone have told me my teammate just got attacked? _

 

_ Doesn’t SHIELD want me there to help figure this out? _

 

_ Doesn’t Stark need help? _

 

Nausea bubbles up his throat. 

 

He thought he knew how to live with feeling helpless. Turns out, it hurts more after you know you’re capable of helping but also, utterly unable to provide that help.

 

* * *

 

Running a business isn’t as glamorous as most people would have you believe. Sure it’s the American dream to make it big by creating some idea that’ll make you the next Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, or Tony Stark, but people tend to overlook how much  _ mind numbing burearcy  _ comes with the territory. **  
**

 

And he’s not even talking about all the meetings involved to keep everyone on the same page. Tony’s not even talking about all the paperwork you’ve got to do. No, he means the part about ferreting about those slimy weasels who think that just because they’re working in a billion dollar global organization, they can skim money out of corporate funds and get away with it.

 

“Is it this position?” Tony asks the universe at large as he waits in conference room G with Pepper. They’re sitting with their backs to the windows. The warm sunlight gives the muted room a soft golden tint. “Is it cursed? How is it possible to have three Operations VP’s  _ in a row  _ guilty of skimming funds?”

 

“Maybe it’s the job description or job listing,” Pepper muses, circling a few more numbers in the budget reports before she slides the folder over to Tony. “That’s all of them.”

 

“Maybe it’s this fucking city with all its politicians and...” Tony ignores the folder as he mutters, blinking as he stops to process Pepper’s words. He turns to her and asks, “The job listing?”

 

“It’s possible we’re using language that’s attracting a certain kind of person every time.”

 

“A person who thinks they’re stupid enough to try and steal from us.” Tony shakes his head in annoyance. “It’s worth a shot. What’s the worse that than can happen?”

 

Pepper’s eyes crinkle in the corner. Tony wants to lean over and kiss her amused smile but doesn’t because the door opens. 

 

“Jenna’s bringing Ken up,” his secretary tells him in her soft voice. “They’re on their way up.”

 

“Show time,” Tony says, straightening out of his slouch. “You want to do the honors?”

 

“I have more fun being bad cop. You can go first.”

 

There’s that smile again. Tony’s helpless to do anything but smile back at her. “I love you.”

 

“I know,” she grins back, smug and self assured.

 

Tony’s stupid grin probably goes a lot stupider because he loves it when she Han Solo’s him. It’s unfortunate that they’ve got business to attend to. Tall, stately Jenna brings in the broad shouldered Ken, directing him to sit across from Tony and Pepper before walking around the table to sit next to Tony.

 

Tony’s disappointed by how little it takes for the man to break. Pepper barely applies any pressure and he crumples, like a piece of toilet paper in a storm. Tony gets out of his seat and turns to look out at the city; he doesn’t want Ken to see his annoyance.

 

He turns around when Ken starts sniveling. It’s sad to hear and worse to watch. He’s begging in every way except falling to his knees. Tony’s leaning against the warmed glass window, zoning out even as he watches Ken plead for his job and tiredly wondering how much longer are they gonna listen to this, when Ken stops abruptly.

 

With a blink, Tony’s back in the moment. Ken’s staring at him. Wait...no. He’s staring  _ outside _ the office building.

 

“Ken?” Jenna warily asks. “Are you okay?”

 

_ Don’t answer that,  _ Tony pleads and orders in a heartbeat. He doesn’t know why. But he doesn’t like the way Ken’s looking at whatevers outside. His mind races, calculating possibilities and how long it can take an armor to get to him before he can stop himself.

 

Of all the fucking days to not wear hi-

 

“What is  _ that _ ?” Ken’s voice wobbles at the end of his query.

 

They turn as one, Pepper, Jenna, and Tony. He hears Jenna’s sharp inhale and Pepper’s shocked, “What the hell?” at the same time.

 

It’s a SHIELD helicarrier but it blowing up. There’s fire and smoke billowing out of its underbelly even as it lazily tilts on its side. It reminds Tony of a beached whale for some reason. He feels gutted, brain stunned silent until he realizes that the black flecks he’s seeing aren’t pieces of debris falling to the ground.

 

They’re small escape pods.

 

_ Hill! Fury! Steve!  _ Tony scrambles to pull his phone out of his pocket. “JARVIS. Call Hill.”

 

“I can’t reach her,” Pepper says from behind him, face paler than milk. “It says number disconnected.”

 

“Fury!” Tony orders the AI.

 

In the few seconds of silence that follows, a massive explosion blows up inside the helicarrier. Tony watches helplessly as the flaming aircraft’s nose dips down and speeds up in its descent.

 

“The number appears to be disconnected,” JARVIS tells him. “Sir, someone has uploaded several terabytes worth of highly confidential SHIELD information online. Shall I intercept and contain the situation?”

 

“Do it!”

 

“What the hell is going on?” Jenna asks. 

 

Whatever Pepper says is lost under Tony tells JARVIS to call Natasha.

 

No response.

 

“Call Hill!”

 

No response.

 

“Call Rogers!”

 

No response.

 

“Armor incoming in T-minus 41 seconds,” JARVIS intones. “Sir, I have pulled up camera records from Triskelion. There is footage here that would interest you.”

 

“In the armor,” Tony tells the AI as he yanks his tie and jacket off. “Pepper, I’ll be late.”

 

There’s a lot of things Tony considers himself to be doing penance for. Even more things he needs to be held accountable for. But if anything happens to Natasha, Fury, or even Rogers while he was in the same town as them? Tony’s never going to forgive himself.

 

* * *

 

Next time someone asks him to sum up his life in a word, Steve’s going to say “regret.”

 

He regrets not putting up more of a fight against his bullies.

 

He regrets not arguing harder with Bucky to stop him from leaving.

 

He regrets not moving fast enough to stop Eskrine’s killer.

 

He regrets not having the courage to ask Peggy out.

 

He regrets not being able to save Bucky.

 

He regrets being alive.

 

He regrets he was able to break Bucky’s programming, but not enough to get him to stay.

 

And right now? Watching Tony carefully put Steve’s shield out of the way, Steve regrets being a coward.

 

“Don’t want you tripping over it and breaking your nose,” Tony’s teasing him, smile lines forming behind his tinted frames. “It’d be a shame even if the nurses’ll be happy that you’re extending your stay.”

 

The man looks haggard. Steve can’t help but wonder how long it took Tony to find the shield from the bottom of the Hudson. Frankly, he’s still surprised the man is  _ here _ . Why would Tony Stark be here? Did he really fly out first thing after hearing about SHIELD’s fall?

 

_ Tell him, tell him, tell him,  _ a voice whispers from the back of his head.  _ He deserves to know the truth. _

 

But what is the truth? 

 

Steve doesn’t have any proof that Buc-the Winter Soldier killed the Stark’s. He only had the word of a Nazi megomanic. Bad guys lie all the time to drive a reaction out of the good guys. It was just clever use of images to imply a connection between the two things.

 

_ He deserves to know _ , the voice reminds him, good and firm.  _ It’s only fair _ .

 

Fuck. 

 

Steve swallows harshly, wishing he had drank the water when Tony’d offered it. “Tony...”

 

“Yeah?” Tony stops mid-sentence and turns his full attention on Steve.

 

He feels 15 again, too small, too skinny, and very ashamed about how his teacher is scolding him in front of the class again because his trousers come up over his shoes. He can’t help it if they can’t afford a new pair of pants for him. It's so much shame Steve could drown in it. 

 

Shame and guilt burns in the pit of his stomach, turning his courage to ash that floats up to stick to the back of his throat. 

 

Tony deserves to know.

 

Even if it’s a possibility, Tony should know. If for no other reason than to prove the theory wrong.

 

Instead of telling the brunet the truth, Steve winds up rasping, “Thank you for bringing my shield back.”

 

“Anytime.”

 

_ You God damned fucking coward _ .

 

Steve closes his eyes and tells himself he won’t tell Tony until he’s sure.

 

He won’t inflict this pain on Tony. 

 

It’s probably a lie anyways.

 

* * *

 

_ I’m such an idiot _ .

 

_ I should have told him. _

 

_ What is this? _

  
  


_ Why did I wait so long?  _

 

_ What the fuck is this video? _

 

_ Why didn’t I do what I said I’d do and try to find proof? _

 

_ Is that...that can’t be... _

 

_ Where’d this even come from? Why didn’t Tony find this? Or Vision? _

  
  


_ I’m such an idiot. _

 

_ Is that  _ Barnes?

 

_ He’s pissed...shit, shit, shit! He’s so fucking pissed! _

 

_ Did Rogers know about this? _

 

_ What do I say? _

 

_ Why isn’t he saying anything? _

 

_ What do I tell him?  _

_ Did he know??? _

 

_ Is he going to hurt Bucky? _

 

_ Why didn’t he tell me? _

 

_ Just tell him the truth. Tell him you know. _

 

_ Does he not trust me? _

 

_ He’ll never trust me again after this. _

 

_ Did all this Accords shit happen because he _ never _ trusted me? _

 

_ How can I fix this?  _

 

_ I stuck my neck out for  _ this  _ guy? _

 

Can I  _ even fix this? _

 

This _ guy who didn’t have the common fucking decency to tell me the truth about how my  _ parents  _ died? _

 

_ Oh God... _

 

_ I’m such a fucking idiot. _


End file.
